When the Spaniards arrived in the 16th century, the Mayan area was comprised of a whole series of small political units. The absence of centralised power made conquest difficult and the struggle continued until the end of the 17th century.

The practical absence of precious metals, the diversity of the climate, the difficulties of land communication, along with a strong indigenous cultural tradition are the features which mark the development of the region since its irregular conquest, depending on the different zones, until Independence.

The struggle between the Mayan people and the representatives of the Spanish Grown (functionaries, the clergy and landowners) would determine the onset of a process of marginalisation of the indigenous people from the Colony’s beginnings until today, which is manifested in a progressive loss of their lands, their transformation into a labour force working in conditions of semi-slavery, and the attacks on their traditions and lifestyles. However, the degree of resistance in the rural areas is evident in the survival of different variants of the Mayan language, their forms of constructing their houses, specific religious rites and the many implements of pre-Hispanic origin that survive today. In the urban areas, the white and mestizo populations control almost all social, cultural and economic activity.